BASEBALL; Lima's Shot With Mets No Laughing Matter

By BEN SHPIGEL

Published: February 17, 2006

Pedro Mart?z was cackling into his cellphone when another one rang a few feet behind him. It belonged to Jay Horwitz, the Mets' vice president for media relations, and the voice on the other end was Jose Lima's, the national anthem-crooning, towel-waving merengue singer who moonlights as a right-handed pitcher.

''It's Lima Time,'' Horwitz said.

Mart?z abruptly ended his call and swiveled his head as Horwitz finished his conversation.

''That was Jose Lima?'' Mart?z said. ''Why was he calling you?''

''Because we signed him, Pedro,'' Horwitz said.

Mart?z's eyes widened.

''We signed him for real? Oh, not Jose Lima.''

Mart?z buried his face in his hands and started laughing uncontrollably.

''Lima!'' he shouted. ''Oh, no. This is going to be one crazy clubhouse.''

Mart?z, who last season was delighted with an unscheduled sprinkler shower on the pitching mound, tried to teach Spanish to the South Korean reliever Dae Sung Koo and bestowed teammates with names like ''papaya head'' and ''fortune cookie,'' is the official source of comic relief in the Mets' clubhouse. Letting the zany Lima, who has signed a minor league deal with the Mets, inhabit a locker fewer than five feet from Mart?z is an invitation for all sorts of spring-training hijinks.

''Any time you've got players with these sorts of personalities, they're bound to lighten up the entire mood,'' the pitching coach Rick Peterson said. ''It's great for everybody.''

Lima swooped into the Mets' clubhouse late Thursday morning wearing a silver three-piece suit, a black fedora and diamond earrings roughly the size of a bottle cap. He primped and preened for photographers in front of his new jersey (No. 99) and promptly proclaimed that he owned more than 2,000 suits.

''I've never worn the same one twice,'' he said, before changing into more casual clothes. ''I give the old ones to my brothers. They wear the same size that I do.''

As much as the Mets figure to enjoy Lima's looseness and animated personality, they would prefer a return to his 2004 form, when he won 13 games for the Dodgers and helped to put them into the postseason. Officially, there is a competition for the fifth spot in the Mets' rotation, with Aaron Heilman, Brian Bannister, Yusaku Iriki, Alay Soler, John Maine and Lima all in contention.

But the Mets clearly envision Heilman, who had a standout 2005 season as a reliever, emerging from the pack. His locker is in a row with the other starting pitchers, including Mart?z, who has an empty cubicle beside him. Lima figures to occupy that seat more than a few times.

''I'm just going to watch Pedro this spring,'' Lima said. ''There's so much I can learn from him.''

On Thursday, the two Dominican pitchers -- Lima, 33, is a year younger than Mart?z -- got together privately in a restricted area of the clubhouse. They could not be seen, but their laughter could be heard.

But until proven otherwise, Lima is a long shot to make the team. That is what happens when you go 5-16 in 32 starts in 2005, with a 6.99 earned run average, with all of the damage occurring while pitching for a bad Kansas City club. At the end of the season, Lima heard that he was done, that no team wanted to take a chance on him.

He returned to the Dominican Republic and said he had a fantastic season in winter ball pitching for Aguilas. He has no shortage of confidence. He said he expects to be part of the Mets' opening-day roster. Whether that is as a starter or reliever, Lima does not care.

''Whatever, I'm not picky,'' Lima said, smiling. ''I'm just proud to be wearing that uniform.''

Pitching for a team in New York seems more his speed. The more people who witness his fist pumping, shouting and moments of talking to himself on the mound, the better, he says. During his only season in Los Angeles, Lima once did a pregame performance with his salsa band, Banda Mambo, in the Dodger Stadium parking lot.

Do not expect much in the way of dancing for the next week or so, though. Lima said he wanted to ease into the routine here before unleashing hip gyrations or reminding his teammates of a merengue album he once recorded that was called, ''The Mambo of Lima.''

And first he wants to prove that after 12 moderately successful, and rarely boring, major league seasons, he can enjoy a 13th. The test begins Saturday, with the first official workout.

''I'm so excited that I don't know if I'm going to be able to sleep Friday night,'' Lima said.

His alarm will ring early the next morning, signaling that Lima Time is about to begin.

INSIDE PITCH

Jos?eyes said that he had made the 30-man final roster for the Dominican Republic team for the World Baseball Classic.

Photos: Jose Lima, a free spirit who recently signed a minor league contract with the Mets, made his first appearance at Tradition Field yesterday. (Photo by Chris Livingston for The New York Times)(pg. D1); The Mets hope Jose Lima will be able to return to his 2004 form, when he won 13 games for the Dodgers. (Photo by Chris Livingston for The New York Times)(pg. D8)